Social Media has to be the most talked about marketing topic of the last several years. When Time Magazine ran a cover story called “How Twitter Will Change the Way We Live” (June 5, 2009) it was a sure sign that what was once a niche topic had become a cultural phenomenon. You may also have seen a few statistics about the astronomical growth of social media. If you haven’t seen enough, take a look at this video: The Social Media Revolution.
But as marketers we have to sort through the hype and figure out how to harness this new venue to win customers. At JPL, we’ve been thinking about this a lot. So what’s the big idea?
Word-of-Mouth
As marketers we know that word- of- mouth may be the most powerful influence on consumers. When your neighbor tells you over your back fence that she loves her new Toyota Prius, say no more! No TV commercial, website, or print ad can match the impact of that personal testimonial. In the past, it was hard for marketers to seed these word- of- mouth networks with positive product news because they were personal networks. But today, it’s increasingly easy for marketers to join the conversation between neighbors on Facebook, through Twitter and on a host of other emerging electronic networks.
So when you get right down to it, social networking is a new way to do what people have always wanted to do – connect with one another and share news and ideas. What’s new is the way technology has increased the speed and reach of these conversations.
What’s Driving This Trend?
New technology is enabling people to do things they’ve always wanted to do: create, collaborate, and gain control.
Creativity: Cell phones have cameras that make it easy to shoot whatever looks cool and memorable and Flickr provides a place to post and share these photos. Blog tools like WordPress are fast and free, and they make each of us an editorialist.
Collaboration: Facebook and Twitter, enabled by mobile phones, create contact which becomes a conduit for constantly sharing ideas.
Control: With DVRs we control what we view on TV and when we view it and we can skip ads; with smart phones we choose who can reach us and how; and with Facebook we can create a view of ourselves which we present to the world.
What Does It All Mean for Marketers?
Like so many cultural changes, the rise of social media represents both a threat and an opportunity for marketers. Social media takes the traditional means of control away from marketers – control of their brand message as it is broadcast through mass media channels. But it also creates the opportunity to connect with customers in a more intimate fashion than has ever been possible- social media literally offers the opportunity to join the conversation that neighbors are having over the new back fence, their online networks. And the marketing power of that is formidable.
Making Sense of Social Media
Social Media has to be the most talked about marketing topic of the last several years. When Time Magazine ran a cover story called “How Twitter Will Change the Way We Live” (June 5, 2009) it was a sure sign that what was once a niche topic had become a cultural phenomenon. You may also have seen a few statistics about the astronomical growth of social media. If you haven’t seen enough, take a look at this video: The Social Media Revolution.
But as marketers we have to sort through the hype and figure out how to harness this new venue to win customers. At JPL, we’ve been thinking about this a lot. So what’s the big idea?
Word-of-Mouth
As marketers we know that word- of- mouth may be the most powerful influence on consumers. When your neighbor tells you over your back fence that she loves her new Toyota Prius, say no more! No TV commercial, website, or print ad can match the impact of that personal testimonial. In the past, it was hard for marketers to seed these word- of- mouth networks with positive product news because they were personal networks. But today, it’s increasingly easy for marketers to join the conversation between neighbors on Facebook, through Twitter and on a host of other emerging electronic networks.
So when you get right down to it, social networking is a new way to do what people have always wanted to do – connect with one another and share news and ideas. What’s new is the way technology has increased the speed and reach of these conversations.
What’s Driving This Trend?
New technology is enabling people to do things they’ve always wanted to do: create, collaborate, and gain control.
Creativity: Cell phones have cameras that make it easy to shoot whatever looks cool and memorable and Flickr provides a place to post and share these photos. Blog tools like WordPress are fast and free, and they make each of us an editorialist.
Collaboration: Facebook and Twitter, enabled by mobile phones, create contact which becomes a conduit for constantly sharing ideas.
Control: With DVRs we control what we view on TV and when we view it and we can skip ads; with smart phones we choose who can reach us and how; and with Facebook we can create a view of ourselves which we present to the world.
What Does It All Mean for Marketers?
Like so many cultural changes, the rise of social media represents both a threat and an opportunity for marketers. Social media takes the traditional means of control away from marketers – control of their brand message as it is broadcast through mass media channels. But it also creates the opportunity to connect with customers in a more intimate fashion than has ever been possible- social media literally offers the opportunity to join the conversation that neighbors are having over the new back fence, their online networks. And the marketing power of that is formidable.